Ministries of the Government

​Sukhumi had flourished under Soviet rule. Its warm, sub tropical climate and beautiful black sea beaches made it a haven for tourists. Stalin even had his own summer house on the banks of Abkhazia’s Lake Ritsa. War destroyed all of this. From 1992 to 1993, Georgians and Abkhazians fought bitterly over the land, thousands died and many hundreds of thousands remain displaced to this day. The Abkhazians eventually fought the Georgians out, and they gained their independence, but few nations have ever recognised their sovereignty. The conflict left the country in ruins, and in Sukhumi, you cannot help but notice the sheer number of buildings that still remain abandoned, derelict and war torn today. Abkhazia has a small population, the Georgians that once lived alongside them in the capital were killed or removed, and the small nation has struggled to recover economically in a country that is at the mercy of its Russian neighbour to the north, and completely isolated from its bitter Georgian enemy to the east.ne of the largest of these abandoned relics, is the remnants of the government building. The Abkhazian flag flies proudly from the roof, but the interior is derelict, and the outside is visibly damaged by war. It’s a legacy of the dark times that befell this city. A brutal monument to war and destruction.On September 27 1993, Abkhazian military forces fought their way into Georgian held Sukhumi. The Georgian resistance crumbled, and what ensued was an horrific bloodbath. There was a bitter fight for the government building itself. It was stormed by Abkhazian military forces, and the government ministers and employees who had remained behind, refusing to leave, were rounded up, and many were executed.Today you just wander across the road and head inside.

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